The chat transcript from yesterday and the Q&A today. First, something that amused me in the chat transcript.
ether: How much would you account last weeks showing to a. Poor execution by the players b. Poor planning and adjusting by the coaching staff or c. Michigan State the having superior players?
Paul Zeise: Good question. If I were grading I’d give both the defensive players and defensive coaching staff a failing grade for that game. It seems like it has gotten to the point where every team that runs a spread and runs some option turns into the 1995 Nebraska Cornhuskers. I mean, sooner or later you’d think Pitt would have some degree of success against these kinds of offenses and plays. But again, players have to make plays. The Panthers linebackers need to not just get to the point, but make the play once they get there. The defensive ends need to take better angles to the play. The secondary guys need to do a better job of getting into the action and stopping plays. Michigan State no doubt was physically superior to Pitt, but not 335 yards worth. This was hopefully for Pitt’s sake just a bad day.
[Emphasis added.]
Now, see what happens when the DC is directly indicted.
BringBackWalt: How is Paul Rhodes still employed? How many years now have teams run all over his defense?
Paul Zeise: The defense started off good this year. They’ve had two good games and one bad one. I’d say wait until the end of this year, now that there are some better pieces in place, before you try and run him out of town. He’s a good coach and I think you’ll see that again as some of these younger players continue to develop and gain some experience.
Since the question didn’t specify the kind of offense that runs over the D, Zeise ignores the issue of Paul Rhoads being clueless against the spread and option over the years this time. Instead focusing on this year and the first two games — against teams that don’t run the option. Unlike in the earlier question where the guilty DC wasn’t named, where it was conceded that the Pitt defense has never learned to defend the spread or option.
It’s two things. One, by all accounts, Rhoads is a rather personable guy and well-liked. It means the media doesn’t want to have to take shots at him if they can avoid it. It’s the sort of thing that has helped Dave Wannstedt in his career — until things reached a certain point of disappointment and frustraton is reached.
The second, is that Zeise is a beat writer. He has to see the players and coaches on an almost daily basis and depends on access to them to do his job. To that end, he wants to avoid directly bad-mouthing the players and coaches.
It’s a frustrating gray area for readers and the writers. Think about how many times in this season and in training camp there has been non-specific talk of bad chemistry in the locker room last year. How the beat writers from bothw papers own writing suggest they were well aware of the problems. Yet, if you look back at all the stories from the past season you will not find a single story about bad chemistry, locker room issues and such.
That’s the double-edged sword that is access. You get the access to write stories and provide more information. But that access also demands controlling how much is shared — lest the access be cut-off. Personally, I think the beat writers for Pitt are a little too secretive and concerned about access issues.
On the other side, they would then be busting and putting a lot more on the players. The kids who are still learning about dealing with the media and everything else with life. Plus, everytime they report something negative, there is that loud minority of fans who accuse the paper and the writer of having and agenda, bias or anti- the team.
Sorry, just went off on a tangent there about the media.
A lot of the chat also concerns the idea of moving Conredge Collins to RB rather than FB. The previous couple of seasons, there was probably no bigger champion of Brandon Mason than Zeise. Collins is now his latest. Probably a reflection of the kind of RB he thinks is best, as much as anything else.
In the Q&A for today, Zeise does his best to oppose letting the kids play yet. He comes off as neutral on Dorin Dickerson and Elijah Fields getting playing time, not caring about getting the back-ups any work, “Who cares about getting the back-up quarterback experience? What about the back-up center? Or third string safety? They might have to play some day soon, too. Walt Harris used to burn redshirts for two series of “experience” for the back-up.” He doesn’t want to see the younger players taking more work in the games. Essentially backing the coaches decisions and the status quo.
I’m open to the possibility that he sees that the kids aren’t ready yet in practice, but really doesn’t say that (except for Fields). It just seems as much about trying to not upset the present starters and not second-guess the coaches decisions on who to play.
